Method of knitting



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I I I I I I Patented Oct. '17, 1944 METHOD OF KNITTING Oscar Fregeolle,Central Falls, R. 1., assignor to Hemphill Company, Central Falls, R.1., acorporation of Massachusetts Application December 1, 1943, SerialNo. 512,469

11 Claims.

This invention relates to a new and useful improvement in a method ofknitting on knitting machines of the circular, independent needle typeand to the fabric produced by that method. Although the method may beperformed and the fabric produced on various kinds of knitting machinesof the circular type, the well-known Banner machine is peculiarly suitedfor the purpose and, consequently, it has been selected for purposes ofillustration and description herein.

Heretofore difficulty has been encountered particularly in the knittingof hosiery in securing a uniform and symmetrical loop structure. Itfrequently happens that some of the loops are tilted from theperpendicular and that one side of the loop is difi'erent from the otherso that the two halves are not symmetrical. Although these peculiaritiesare minute they nevertheless impair the overall appearance of the fabricparticularly fine gauge sheer fabric in which substantially perfect loopstructure is essential. v

The defects mentioned above are particularly noticeable in split fabricproduced by reciprocatory knitting because the tilt of the loops tendsto follow the direction'of knitting so that in ad- Jacent courses theloops of one course tilt in one direction whereas the loops in the nextcourse tilt in the other, producing the so called washboard effect.

By this invention the defects mentioned are substantially eliminatedwith the result that a more symmetrical, straighter waled, and muchbetter looking fabric is produced. The invention requires only a fewinexpensive and easily made changes in the mechanism and correspondinglysmall'changes in the method of knitting but the improvement in resultsobtained is very noticeable particularly in split work and more thanjustifies the trouble and expense of the alterations....

One embodiment of the invention is shown in the drawings of which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a part of a circular Fig. 4 is an isometricview illustrating a number of the needles and sinkers and the manner inwhich the leg and instep yarn is manipulated by them; a

Fig. 5 is a similar view relating to the drawing and knitting of theyarn of the high splice, heel, sole and toe portions of a stockinghaving a split foot; I

Figs. 6 and 7 are diagrammatic views of a needle and sinker illustratingthe manner in which the leg and instep yarn is drawn in accordance withthis invention;

Figs. 8 and 9 are similar views illustrating the manner in which theyarn is drawn for the high splice, heel, sole and toe portions;

Fig. 10 is a view complementary to Figs. 6 and 7, and 8 and 9illustrating a further step in the knitting operation;

Figs. 11, 12 and 13 are diagrammatic views of a needle illustratingdifferent steps in knitting the leg and instep;

Figs. 14:, 15 and 16' are similar views illustrating steps in theknitting of the high splice, heel, sole and toe;

. Figs. 17, 18 and 19 are views of a needle and two adjacent sinkersfurther illustrating the method of knitting the leg and instep;

Figs. 20 and 21 are similar views further illustrating the knitting ofthe high splice, heel, sole and toe;

Fig. 22 is a view of a sock or half-hose produced by the method of thisinvention;

Fig. 23 is a view of a ladys stocking also produced by this invention;and

Figs. 24 and 25 are accurate reproductions of enlarged projections ofactual split fabric produced respectively by the method of thisinvention and by the usual method showing the improvement obtained.

As shown in Fig. '1 the knitting machine in general is provided with theusual cylinder 1, needles 2, yarn levers 3 and 4 carrier ring 5 andsinker cap 6 to which are attached the usual cams l, 8 and 9 forcontrolling the sinkers in the knitting of the high splice, heel, soleand toe portions of a split foot stocking. On the auxiliary side of themachine there is another yarn lever ID for feeding the yarn from whichthe legand instep are knit. On this side of the machine are also shownside sinker cams H and I2 and center sinker cam l3 for controlling thesinkers in the knitting of this yarn.

Generally speaking, the method of this invention follows the usualpractice in the production of a split foot stocking. That is to say, the

'the machine is raised out of operative leg is knitted by straight-a-wayrotary knitting Whereas the remainder of the stocking beginning at thetop of the high splice is produced by reciprocatory knitting, part ofthe needles being utilized to knit the instep from the same yarn ployedin the leg and part of the needles being used to knit the high splice,heel, sole and toe portions from another yarn or yarns. The margins ofthe instep and adjacent portions are, of course, interknitted to formsuture seams. While the structure of these suture seams may be varied, Iprefer the structure shown in Patent #1,673,766 to Gagne, in which inone course of each side of the stocking there is a ,loop and a partialloop of one yarn interknit with a single loop of the other yarn, becauseof its strength and extremely attractive appearance.

Since the leg and instep are 'to be knitted of the same yarn and theknitting of the high splice, heel, sole and toe portions of a split footstocking is customarily performed on the main side of the machine, theauxiliary side indicated by the yarn main feeding station.

lever I is utilized 'for knitting the leg and instep V yarn. Fig. 1 willserve to illustrate this it it is assumed that yarn lever 3-at the mainside of position so that yarn I4 is not fed to the needles. I

Assuming that yarn lever I0 is in feeding position, yarn 5 will be fedto the needles which are moved in the usual rotary manner for knittingthe leg. Sinker cam I2 is provided with a point I6 which causes thesinkers to move inwardly sooner and further than usual so that the yarnI5 is drawn and measured over the backs of the sinkers I! as shown inFigs. 4, 6 and 7 instead of in the throats as shown in Figs. 5, 8 and 9.When the sinkers are retracted by center sinker cam 9 the loops willpass from the backs of the sinkers over the tops of the nibs into thethroats as illustrated in Figs. 17

and 18. This will tend to stretch these loops somewhat. At-this time thenewly formed loops are, of course, hanging upon the shanks of theneedles having passed from the position shown in Fig. 11 around thelatches to the position shown in Fig. 12. v

The knitting cycle being completed, new loops i5 drawn, as abov'edescribed, and the sinkers advanced to cast off the old loops at Hi, thecasting off will be performed by the engagement of the sinkers with theold lo'ops I5 themselves as shown in Fig. 19 instead of by means of thenewly formed loops l5 as would be the case if the yarn were drawn in thethroats of the sinkers (Figs. 20 and 21). Therefore, by this new methodof knitting the newly drawn yarn which is still on the backs of thesinkers is substantially undisturbed by the casting oif process, thestrain of this somewhat violent operation being borne entirelyby thecompletely formed, comparatively stable, old loops.

As a result of the manipulation of the sinkers as described above, theneedle loops which ordinarily hang rather loosely upon the needle shanksas shown in Fig. 15 because they have been previously riding upon thelatches as shown in Fig. 14, are drawn snugly around the needle shanksas shown in Fig. 12 when the sinkers are retracted to cause the adjacentsinker loops to pass over their nibs. This tends to equalize the size ofthe needle loops and, consequently, the size of the adjacent sinkerloops. When the needle loops are cast oif although they are necessarilystretched somewhat because they must pass over the latches, all of themwill be stretched substantially to the same degree because they havebeen previously brought to the same size around the shanks of theneedles as above described. This manipulation of the sinker and needleloops combined with the throwing of the strain of casting off upon theold loops appear to be the factors which make possible the production ofboth sinker loops and needle loops of more nearly the same sizerespectively and eliminates the tendency of individual loops to tilt andto be unsymmetrical.

If desired, the leg of the stocking may be made of two yarns knittedsimultaneously, one at the main side-and one at the, auxiliary side ofthe machine. .This' is illustrated by Fig. 2 in which it is assumed thatyarn lever 4 has been moved into feeding position to feed a yarn 2| atthe Ordinarily the yarn 2| will be identical with yarn l5 fed at theauxiliary station. With this arrangement yarn l5 will be drawn over thebacks of the sinkers and knitted in the manner. already described withthe exception that casting of! will occur at point 24' instead of Ii.

Yarn 2| must also be drawn and knitted in the same way at the same time.To do this yarn 2| must be drawn over the backs of the sinkers. For thispurpose a flopper cam 23 is provided having point '24 corresponding topoint l6 of cam I2 which when the cam is swung in will move the sinkersin sooner and further than they would be moved by cam 8. Mechanism foroperating such a flopper cam is well-known and requires no descriptionhere. Yarn 2| is trans ferred from the backs of the sinkers over thenibs to the throats when the sinkers-are retracted by center sinker camI3 on the auxiliary side and are-finally cast off at IE on the auxiliaryside. By feeding and knitting yarns simultaneously on opposite side'ofthe machine the time required for knitting the leg is cut in half.

A similar result can be obtained by knitting two yarns simultaneouslybut both at the auxiliary side as illustrated in Fig. 3. Hence the sameyarn lever i0 and yarn i5 is shown as in Figs. 1 and 2 and an additionalyarn lever 25 positioned in advanceof yarn lever I0 and yarn '26 fedthereby. In this instance, yarn I5 is drawn and knit. as before. Yarn 26is drawn over the backs of the sinkers, which have been projectedinwardly by point 24' of cam 8 and knit just ahead of point 21' of camat which cam point the old loops of yarn l5 are then cast off. Thesinkers are then drawn out by cam |3 to. transfer the newly drawn loopsof yarn 26 from the backs to the throats of thesinkers and these loopsare cast off at point I6 of cam |2 after the yarn l5 has been drawn andknit again.

Here, as in thearrangement of Fig. 2, it will be noted both yarns aredrawn over the backs of the sinkers and subsequently caused to pass overthe nibs into the throats and the new loops are cast off by theengagement of the sinkers with the previously formed loops all exactlyas described before. In this way the time required for knitting the legof the stocking is cut in half and the described improvements in thefabric obtained.

When the knitting of the leg is completed and the knitting of thehigh-heel splice is about to begin a change is made from rotary toreciprocat'ory knitting as is customary. If the leg has been knit of twoyarns as described inconnection with Figs. 2 and 3, yarn lever 4 or 25,as the case may be, is raised to take yarn 2| or 26 out s,soo,oas

,cuiar, independent needle, knitting machine of action and yarn lever 3is'lowered to bring yarn H into position to be fed to the needles forknitting the high splice, heel, sole and toe at the main side of themachine. Also flopper cam 23 (Fig.

1) is retracted. The needles upon which the instep is knit or yarn IEwill continue to draw the yarn over the backs of the sinkers and to knitas already described but-in both directions of reciprocation utilizingidentical sinker cams Ii and I2 on the auxiliary side for the purpose,

points-'21 and 27 of cam ll corresponding to po'nts l6 and iii of caml2. Part of the sinkers will be retracted to transfer the loops from thebacks to the throats by center sinker cam 9 at the main side of themachine and the remainder by center sinker cam l3 at the auxiliary sideon the reverse stroke in either direction of knitting. Casting oil.occurs at points l6 and 2'! respect.vely. a

The yarn I4 at the main side will be drawnin the oldmanner in thethroats of the sinkers by virtue of the usual sinker cams 1 and 8 toproduce fabric of the usual type in-the usual way in the high splice,.heel, sole and toe (Figs. 5, 8, 9, 14-16, 20, 21). The two types offabric will, of course, be interlinked at adjacent edges by suturespreferably of the character already ment oned and illustrated at 28 and29 in Figs. 22 and 23 respectively and any of the other features usuallyfound in high splice, split foot hosiery for men or ladies may beincluded such, for example, as an automatically turned welt 30, apointed high heel 3|, bufier heel 32, narrow cradle sole 33 and bufiertoe 34. The manner in which these features are made is well-known andneeds no further description.

The improvement insplit fabric obtained by following the method of 'thisinvention in reciprocatory knitting is shown in Figs. 24 and 25. Fig. 24is an accurate reproduction of an actual enlargement of actual fabricknitted in the usual way in which both yarns are drawn in the throats ofthe sinkers. The washboard eiTect resulting from the tilting of theloops of one course 35 in one direction and of the next course 36 in theother direction is clearly evident as is the effect of theseirregularities upon the sharpness of outline of the wales. Also many ofthe individual loops such as 3'! are not only tilted but unsymmetricalwhich further impairs the appearance of the fabric.

Fig. 25 is a similar accurate reproduction of a piece of split fabricknitted by the new method in which the leg and instep yarn is drawn overthe backs of the sinkers. Although traces of the washboard effect mayremain, the great improvement obtained is clearly evident. The loops aremuch straighter, more symmetrical and of more uniform size.Consequently, the wales are more sharply defined and the generalappearance of the fabric is far superior to that of the old.

The word stocking as used herein is to be understood as including thearticle as it is removed from the knitting machine before the toeopening is closed as well as the completely finished article.

It will also be understood that the invention V may be carried out onother knitting machines than the Banner machine used here fordescription and that different mechanisms from those described hereinmay be used without departing from the scope of the invention as definedby the appended claims,

I claim:

"which consists of simultaneously knitting upon f two groups of needleswith individual yarns, one yarn belng'drawn over the backs ofsinkers'and the. other yarn being drawn in the throats of sinkers.

'2. A method of knitting split fabric upon a circular, independentneedle, knitting machine which consists of simultaneously knitting upontwo groups of needles with individual yarns, one yarn being drawn'overthe backs of thesinkers and through the needle loops ofthe previouscourse, the previously formed needle loops being cast off by the sinkersacting upon the correspondingsinker loops only, and ':causing the newlydrawn sinker loops to pass from the backs ,toithe throats of thesinkers'over the tops of thenibs.

fill

1. A method of knitting split fabric upon a cir- 75 cular,

3. A method of knitting split fabric upon a cirindependent needle,knitting machine which consists of simultaneously knitting in areciprocatory manner upon two groupsof needles with individual yarns,one yarn being drawn over the backs of sinkers and the other yarn beingdrawn in the throats of the sinkers.

'4. A method of knitting split fabric upon 'a circular, independentneedle, knitting machine,

which consists of simultaneously knitting in a reciprocatory manner upontwo groups of needles with individual yarns, one yarn being drawn overthe backs of sinkers and through the needle loops of the previous courseand the previously formed needle loops being cast off by the sinkersacting upon the corresponding sinker loops only, and causing the newlydraw-n sinker loops to pass from the backs to the throats of the sinkersover the tops of the nibs.

5. A method of knitting split fabric upon a circular, independentneedle, knitting machine which consists of simultaneously knitting in areciprocatory manner upon two groups of needles with individual yarns,one yarn being drawn over the backs of the sinkers and through theneedle loops of the previous course, the previously formed needle loopsbeing cast off by the sinkers acting .upon 1,he.corresponding sinkerloops only, and causingth'e newly drawn sinker loops to pass from thebacks to the throats of the sinkers over the tops of the nibs.

6. The method of knitting split fabric upon a circular, independentneedle, knitting machine which consists of dividing'the needles into twogroups, feeding a separate yarn to each group of needles, drawing oneyarn over the backs of the sinkers and through the needle loops of theprevious course, casting off the previously formed needle loops by thesinkers acting upon the corresponding sinker loops only, causing thenewly drawn sinker loops to pass from the backs to the throats of thesinkers over the backs of the nibs, and simultaneously feeding anotheryarn to the other group of needles, drawing this yarn in the throats ofsinkers and casting off the previously formed needle loops by thesinkers acting upon the newly drawn yarn.

7. A method of knitting split hosiery fabric upon a circular,independent needle, knitting machine which consists of knitting theinstep of one yarn upon one group of needles, the loops of said yarnbeing drawn over the backs of sinkers and subsequently transferred overthe nibs to the throats, and simultaneously knitting thecircumferentially corresponding portions of the fabric of another yarnby the remainder of the needles the loops of said other yarn being drawnin the throats of sinkers.

8. A method of knitting split hosiery fabric upon a circular,independent needle, knitting machine which consists of knitting theinstep oi one yarn upon one group of needles. the loops of said yarnbeing drawn over the backs of sinkers. and subsequently transferred overthe nibs to the throats, simultaneously knitting the circumferentiallycorresponding portions oi the fabric of another yarn by the remainder ofthe needles, the loops of said other yarn being drawn in the throats ofsinkers, and interknitting said two portions course by course atadjacent edges.

9. The method of knitting a stocking which consists of knitting the legportion in a rotary manner of at least one yarn including the step ofdrawing said yarn over the backs of the sinkers, then knitting theinstep and corresponding circumferential portions with the exception ofthe heel and toe, simultaneously in a reciprocatory manner upon two setsof needles supplied with individual yarn including the steps of drawingone of said yarns over the backs of sinkers and drawing the other ofsaid yarns in the throats of sinkers.

10. The method of knitting a stocking upon a circular, independentneedle, knitting machine provided with main and auxiliary yarn feedingstations which consists of knitting the leg by simultaneously feedingindividual yarns to the needles at each feeding station. knitting bothyarns in a rotary manner both of said yarns being drawn over the backsof the sinkers and then continuing the knitting of the instep andadjacent portions of the stocking in a reciprocatory manner the instepbeing knitted of one of the yarns of which the leg was knitted, saidyarn being drawn over the backs of the sinkers as in the knitting of theleg portion, the portions of the stocking adjacent the instep beingknitted simultaneously of another yarn drawn in the throats of thesinkers.

11. The method of knitting a stocking on a circular, independent needle,knitting machine having a plurality of yarn feeding stations whichconsists of knitting the leg by simultaneously feeding two independentyarns to the needles from two adjacent feeding stations andindependently knitting both of said yarns in a rotary manner both ofsaid yarns being drawn over the backs of the sinkers. then changing toreciprocatory knitting and knitting the instep of one of the same yarnsin the same manner from one of said feeding stations and knitting theremaining portions of another yarn supplied from a third feeding stationand drawn in the throats of the sinkers.

OSCAR FREGEOLLE.

